Jankibai Explained

Consort:yes
Janki Bai
Succession:Queen consort of the Maratha Empire
Reign:12 March 1689 - 2 March 1700
Maharani of the Maratha Empire
Rani Shrimant Akhand Soubhagyavati Jankibai Raje Sahib Bhonsle
Predecessor:Yesubai Bhonsale
Successor:Tarabai
Spouse:Rajaram I
House:Bhosale
Father:Prataprao Gujar
Birth Date:1675
Religion:Hinduism

Janki Bhosale (née Gujar) (1675 - 2 March 1700 CE) was queen consort of the Maratha Empire as the first wife of Rajaram I.

Jankibai was the daughter of Prataprao Gujar, an aristocratic general, who was the commander-in-chief of the Maratha Army.[1] Her father died in a battle against the Adil Shahi at Nesari on 24 February 1674. Shivaji, the king of the Marathas upon hearing the solemn news, grieved his general's death. As a result, he married his second son, the ten-year-old Rajaram to the five-year-old Jankibai. They were married in a grand ceremony that took place in Raigad Fort on 7 March 1680. Her father-in-law Shivaji died on 3 April 1680, twenty five days after her marriage.[2]

Death

On 2 March 1700, the thirty-year-old Rajaram died following a brief illness. Sources differ on Queen Janakibai's death . Some records say that she committed Sati with her husband at Sinhagad . However Marathi bakhars and letters reveal that Jankibai was one of the captives taken during the Battle of Raigad along with Maharani Yesubai Bhonsale and Shahuji . She was released in 1719 from the Mughal captivity by Peshwa Balaji Vishwanath along with Yesubai and other Maratha women.

Notes and References

  1. Book: Ranade, Mahadeo Govind. Rise of the Maratha power. Hesperides Press.
  2. Book: Mehta, Jashwant Lal. Advanced study in the history of modern India 1707-1813.